Machine for the production of knitted fabrics



March 13, 1934. R, K, MlLLs 1,951,103

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF KNITTED FABRICS Filed Jan. 5, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet l `17ml g dell: 4 ab c] l .defg-Pfl a@ /l 00 82 a mum l 000g 9% :Ilklll'l1'l-l 3 in .v

l B m March 13, 1934. 1 R, K, MILLS 1,951,103

MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF KNITTED FABRICS Filed Jan. 5. 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 2b 2e 9a b 9b 3c Jvea/gr March 13, 1934. R K, M|| 5 1,951,103

MACHINE Fon THE PRODUCTION oF KNITTED FABRICS Filed Jan. 5, 1952 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 @y MMM? I /9 fon/1 ey Patented Mar. 13, 1934 .f

raient orties MACHINE FOR THE PRODUCTION 0F KNITTED FABRICS Robert Kirkland Mills,

Sherwood, Nottingham,

England, assigner to Hosiery Developments, Limited, Nottingham, England Application January 5, 1932, Serial No. 584,869

i In Australia, September 10, 1931 3 Claims.

This invention comprises improvements in machines for the production of knitted fabrics and has reference to machines of the type whereon rib knitted fabrics are produced by the employment of two sets or rows of needles operating to draw thread loops in different or opposite directions.

The main object of this invention is to produce on a machine of the aforesaid type a rib knitted fabric wherein the tendency to rove or ladder is minimized or eliminated.

The type of non-ladder or ladderresisting fabric it is intended to produce on the machine in accordance with this invention is that described in the specification of my application for patent filed Jan. 8, i930, No. 419,228 wherein tied or locked stitches are produced at predetermined intervals by passing selected needle loops through and also closely around another needle loop so as to cause said loops to be tied one upon another.

'in forming tied or locked stitches of this character needles are employed having a plurality, say two, of independently displaceable latches located one below another on the needle stem, said needles being operated at predetermined intervals to cause'a loop of newly fed thread laid between the latches to be drawn through an old loop on the needle without casting oi said latter loop and subsequently to pass the first named or new loop over and closely around said old loop so as to become tied thereon.

According to the present invention a circular knitting machine is provided comprising two sets or rows of needles, thread feeding means, means operating said needles to draw thread loops in different directions to produce rib fabric, individual needles having a plurality of pivoted latches thereon, and means whereby at predetermined intervals said plural latch needles are operated to produce locked or tied stitches.

For the purpose of more fully describing the nature of this invention reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:-

Figure 1 illustrates in plan part of a rib kniting machine in accordance with this invention embodying cylinder and dial needles and showing cams for operating upon the dial needles.

Figure 2 is an elevational View looking. in the direction of arrow X (Figure 1) and showing the cams which coact Vwith the cylinder needles.

Figures 3 to 9 inclusive illustrate successive steps in a cycle of needle operations for the production of locked or tied stitches bythe dial ,nee-

dles and the simultaneous production of normal stitches by the cylinder needles.

Figures lo to 16 inclusive illustrate successive steps in a cycle of needle operations for the production of normal stitches by the dial needles and the simultaneous production of locked or tied stitches by the cylinder needles.

In the method of carrying out the invention illustrated in the drawings a knitting machine is provided with two sets of needles 1 and 2, the needles l being mounted to reciprocate vertically within a tricked cylinder 3 and the needles 2 being mounted to reciprocate horizontally in a tricked dial e iltted concentrically with and at the top of said cylinder in the well-known manner.

The needles installed in the machine are provided With two pivoted latches spaced along the needle shank, said latches being so positioned that when the top latch, i. e. the one nearest the needle hook, is lowered or opened and the bottom latch, i. e. the one farthest removed from the hook, is raised or swung towards the top latch, the two latches overlap, and a parallel or substantially parallel thread-accommodating clearance is provided between the engaging latches and the needle shank. Advantageously the needles are constructed in accordance with my application for patent Serial No. 503,933 dated 22nd December 1930.

Adapted to operate in succession on each set of needles 1 and 2, i. e. on the cylinder needles and on the dial needles, are two knitting cam devices or sets of cams. One cam device appertaining to each set of needles is constructed to operate the needles coacting therewith in the normal manner and produce thereon ordinary knitted stitches, while the second cam device appertaining to each set of needles is constructved to impart a comparatively greater degree of movement to the needles so that new thread is fed between the needle latches instead of into the needle hook and locked or tied stitches are produced.

In the arrangement shown in Figures 1 and 2 of the accompanying drawings A indicates the normal or ordinary stitch cam set for the cylinder needles and A1 the corresponding normal stitch cam set for the dial needles, B indicating the locked stitch cam set for the cylinder needles and B1 the corresponding locked stitch cam set for the dial needles. In this arrangement it will be seen that the normal stitch cam set A of the cylinder needles is opposed to the locked stitch cam set B1 of the dial needles, while the `more clearly described hereinafter.

locked stitch cam set B of the cylinder needles is oposite to the normal cam set A1 of the dial needles.

Two thread feeders 5, 6 are provided each functioning to feed thread to both sets of needles 1 and 2; one feeder 5 operating in conjunction with the cams A and B1, and the other feeder 6 operating in conjunction with cams B and A1.

The needles, which travel relatively to the stitch cams and feeders in the direction indicated by arrows Y in Figures 1 and 2, are first acted upon by the cams A, B1 and receive new thread from the feeder 5, and are subsequently acted upon by cams B, A1 and receive further thread from the feeder 6.

Now it will be seen by reference to Figures 1 and 2 that during the traverse of the needles over the cams A and B1, the cylinder needles 1 are raised to the normal height to receive thread from the feeder 5 into their hooks and knit normal stitches, whereas the dial needles 2 are projected beyond the normal distance so as to take the thread between their latches and produce locked stitches in a manner which will be On subsequently traversing the cams B, A1, this operation is reversed; the cylinder needles being operated by the loc red stitch cam set B to receive thread from the feeder 6 and make locked stitches, and the dial needles being operated by the normal cam set Al to receive said thread and make normal stitches. Thus locked stitches occur only on one face of the fabric in any one course, and the courses having locked stitches on one face alternate with courses having said locked stitches on the opposite face.

The operation of the needles and production of fabric thereon will be more clearly understood by reference to Figures 3 to 16, wherein Figures 3 to 9 illustrate seven successive steps in the stitch formation effected by the cams A and B1 which steps correspond to the positions designated by letters a to y in Figures l and 2, while Figures 10 to 16 illustrate seven similar steps in the stitch formation effected by the cams Bland A1, which steps correspond with the positions designated by the letters a to g in Figures 1 and 2.

In Figure 3 which shows the relative position of adjacent cylinder and dial needles at a in Figures 1 and 2, the cylinder needle l has not yet commenced to rise and the old stitch loop 7 is retained in the needle hook 1a. The dial needle 2 has, however, been projected to clear its old stitch loop 8 to the rear of the rst latch 2b, i. e. the latch nearest the hook 2a, in which position said loop 8 is located over the second latch 2c which is overlapped by the rst latch 2b.

It is now required to pass the loop 8 on to the needle shank beneath the overlapping latches 2b, 2c, and for this purpose a small auxiliary cam bit B2 is provided on the dial 4 (Figure 1) which withdraws the needle 2 a short distance, the position being then as shown in Figure 4 and at b. Continuing, the dial needle is projected to its full extent to the peak of cam B1, during which motion the loop 8 opens or presses back the second latch 2c and clears same, while the cylinder needle 1 is raised to clear its old loop '7 below the top latch lb and lies upon the lower latch 1c, as in Figure 5 and at c.

At the next step (Figure 6 and corresponding position d) the cylinder needle 1 has commenced its downward motion and new thread 9 is fed from the feeder 5 to both needles, the old loop 7 meanwhile passing behind the top latch 1b. The new thread 9 is fed into the hook la of the cylinder needle 1 and between the latches of the dial needle 2. The needle 2 is now held stationary a short time while the needle l continues its downward motion to draw a loop 9a from the new thread 9 and a second loop 9b from said thread over-the open latch 2c of dial needle 2; the old loop '7 meanwhile passing over and closing the top latch 1b of needle 1 and being knocked over so that the loop 9a of new thread is drawn therethrough (Figure 7 and corresponding position e). Thus an ordinary knitted stitch is produced by the cylinder needle.

The dial needle is now retracted while the cylinder needle is moved slightly upwards, and in this motion the new loop 9b passes into a clearance beneath the overlapping latches 2b, 2c while the old loop 8 passes over the said overlapping latches into the needle hook 2a, thus drawing the new loop 9b through said old loop 8 (Figure 8 and corresponding position f). Continuing the retraction of the dial needle 2, the new loop 9b is knocked over and said new loop thus becomes tied upon and locks said old loop 8 as shown in 100 Figure 9. At this position, which corresponds to g in Figures l and 2, the old thread loop 8 is still retained on the dial needle 2, instead of, as is customary in stitch formation, being knocked over.

From this point the needles proceed to be operated upon by the cams B, and Al and a further course or row of stitches is produced from a separate thread 10. It is, however, considered unnecessary to describe in detail the successive steps illustrated in Figures l0 to 16, as they correspond to those described with reference to Figures 3 to 9 except that in Figures 10 to 16 the cylinder needles 1 in traversing cam B receive the thread 10 between the latches and produce a'1'15 locked or tied stitch, while the dial needles in traversing cam A1 receive said thread 10 in the hook and produce an ordinary stitch.

For a clear understanding it may, however, be noted that the positions at which the seven successive motions illustrated in Figures 10 to 16 occur are indicated at al to g1 in Figures 1 and 2; and it will be seen that the old thread loop 8 is, during these motions, cast on the dial needle and over the loop 10a of new thread to form an ordinary stitch, while the cylinder needle operates to retain the loop 9a in its hook and cast off the loop 10b of new thread, said last-named loop thus becoming tied upon the loop 9a and forming a locked stitch.

The small auxiliary cam bit B3 in Figure 2 functions in a manner similar to the cam bit B2 in Figure 1.

By a machine as above-described a rib fabric is knitted wherein the locked or tied stitches occur only on one face of the fabric in any one knitted course, the courses having locked stitches on one face alternating with the courses having such stitches on the other face.

I claim:-

1. In a circular knitting machine for producing rib fabric, two concentric needle carriers, a set of needles in each carrier, said needles having a plurality of latches pivoted one below another, two thread feeds each operating to feed thread to the needles of both sets, two stitch forming cams operating in succession on the needles of one set, two other stitch forming cams operating on the needles of the other set, one cam appertaining to, leach set of needles functioning to produce ordi- 'nary knitted stitches by displacing said needles to an extent to receive thread in the needle hooks, the remaining two cams functioning to produce locked or tied stitches by displacing the needles to take thread between the latches, and each locked stitch cam being opposed in the machine to a normal stitch cam.

2. A circular knitting machine for producing rib fabric comprising a cylindrical needle carrier, a dial needle carrier, needles slidable in each carrier, each needle having two latches pivoted one below the other on its stem, two thread feeds each operating to feed thread simultaneously to the cylinder and dial needles, two stitch cams operating in succession on the cylinder needles, two stitch cams operating in succession on the dial needles, one of the cylinder needle cams and one of the dial needle cams functioning to proj ect the needles to a greater distance than the two remaining cylinder and dial cams so as to cause thread to be fed between the two latches on said needles and produce locked or tied stitches, and each of the said locked stitch cams being opposed to a normal stitch cam.

3. In a circular knitting machine for producing rib fabric, two sets of needles wherein individual needles are formed with hooks and a plurality of latches below the hooks, thread. feeding means, stitch forming cam sets for each set of needles, certain of said cam sets being constructed to displace needles to an extent to receive thread in the needle hooks to produce ordinary stitches and other of the cam sets constructed to impart to movement to take thread between the latches to produce locked or tied stitches, the cam sets for producing locked stitches on one set of needles being opposed to those for producing normal stitches on the other set of needles.

ROBERT KIRKLAND MILLS. 

